Recessed Antenna for Drill Bit Wear Monitoring
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional antennas are not suitable for use on wear surfaces or downhole drilling equipment due to exposure to external forces that can impact and abrade them, making it difficult to effectively monitor tool wear and environmental status in drill-bit or boring machine applications.
Innovation Solution
A redundant sensor wear transducer system with a remote recessed reflector antenna is used, where the antenna is embedded in a recessed cavity within the drill bit, allowing for reliable wireless communication of wear status, temperature, shock, vibration, strain, and pressure data, even if one communication path is blocked.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional antennas are exposed from and/or extend outwardly of supporting structures, then antenna transmission and reception functions are achieved, but the antenna area is impacted and/or abraded by external forces
Solution Approach 1:
The antenna is nested within a recessed cavity in the supporting structure, with the reflector positioned behind the opening. This nesting configuration protects the antenna elements from direct exposure to external forces while maintaining electromagnetic functionality through the recessed geometry.
Solution Approach 2:
The recessed cavity acts as an intermediary protective structure between the antenna and external harmful forces. The cavity walls and reflector configuration provide a protective barrier that shields the antenna elements from direct impact and abrasion while allowing electromagnetic waves to pass through the opening.
2Reliability
If antennas are placed on non-recessed surfaces, then signal transmission effectiveness is improved, but the antenna is exposed to abrasion and damage from external forces
Solution Approach 1:
The antenna is nested within a recessed cavity, protecting it from external forces while maintaining transmission effectiveness through proper reflector positioning and cavity geometry that allows electromagnetic waves to propagate effectively through the opening.
Solution Approach 2:
The antenna is positioned in a recessed cavity rather than on a flat surface, utilizing the third dimension (depth) to provide protection. The reflector is positioned behind the opening plane, creating a multi-dimensional configuration that maintains signal effectiveness while adding protective depth.
3Measurement precision
If visual inspections are performed frequently to monitor drill-bit wear, then wear status is accurately determined, but operational time is lost and productivity is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The wear transducer and antenna system enables the drill bit to self-monitor its own wear status and automatically transmit this information wirelessly. This eliminates the need for manual visual inspections by operators, allowing continuous operation without interruption while maintaining accurate wear monitoring capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The manual visual inspection process is replaced with an electronic sensing and wireless communication system. The wear transducer electronically detects wear conditions and the antenna transmits this data wirelessly, substituting the mechanical/visual inspection method with an automated electronic monitoring system that operates continuously without stopping production.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution enables real-time monitoring of drill-bit wear and environmental conditions, extending the life of drill bits by allowing for continuous data transmission and reducing the need for frequent visual inspections, while protecting the antenna from abrasion and damage.
Implementation Method 1
An antenna is an electrical device that converts electrical power into radio waves and vice versa. In transmission, a radio transmitter supplies an electric current oscillating at radio frequency to the antenna's terminals. The antenna radiates the energy from the current as electromagnetic waves (radio waves).
Implementation Method 2
an oscillating current of electrons forced through the antenna by a transmitter creates an oscillating magnetic field around the antenna elements, while the charge of the electrons also creates an oscillating electric field along the antenna elements. These time-varying fields radiate away from the antenna into space as a moving transverse electromagnetic field wave.
Implementation Method 3
during reception, the oscillating electric and magnetic fields of an incoming radio wave exert force on the electrons in the antenna elements, causing them to move back and forth, creating oscillating currents in the antenna.
Data Source
AI summary
An intelligent blast-hole drill bit that includes a housing embedded into a cavity in a bit body. A controller is disposed in the housing. An external antenna is disposed in the housing and coupled to the controller. An internal antenna is disposed in the housing and coupled to the controller. A wear transducer is disposed in the housing and coupled to the controller.